The Main Event 2013

The Main Event - Straight To The Point

After recently being crowned the ISKA Promotion of the Year 2012, we are delighted to announce that The Main Event 2013 will take place in November! NO imitations, NO resurrections, this is the original and best Muay Thai promotion the country has ever seen, returning for a second instalment.

In light of this recognition your promoters Darren Morris, Phil Shedden and Darren Phillips have, in thorough discussions over the past few weeks, put together new ideas to take The Main Event brand forward.

The Main Event 2013 will be held in a new prestigious venue, "The Point" in Manchester and will, as always, feature some of the U.Ks very finest fighters.

We are also pleased that one of our featured bouts - Darren O'Connor v Paul Karpowicz - also won the award for Fight of the Year 2012!

Further details to be released in the coming weeks -watch this space!!

*Exact date to be confirmed once football fixtures are released in the summer - both the 2nd and 9th are reserved

Minotaurs double World Champion Knowles will take on rising star Jamie Bates in this exciting matchup. Knowles is a veteran of 40 fights and has shared the ring with some of the world's best fighters, including Marlon Hunt and Christian Di Paolo. He has also featured on one of our early Rumble At The Reebok events, claiming a stoppage win over John Gillies. He is due to compete for the WMC World Title in June against a top French opponent.
After a hugely successful amateur career, Bates has been making waves on the kickboxing circuit and has an impressive record of 19 wins from 21 contests. He holds the WKF World Full Contact Title, boasts a win over Marlon Hunt and has fought many notable opponents in a relatively short professional career to date, including Andrew Tate, Richie Hocking and James Watling.
This will be a fantastic fight between two superbly talent fighters - Do Not Miss It!!

Our first bout features one of the U.K's brightest stars, Paul Karpowicz, up against Italian Angelo 'Devilman' Campoli. Campoli is one of Italy's finest Muay Thai athletes and has been in with some high profile names, including our own Liam Harrison. He has fought on many international promotions including Yokkao Extreme and Fight code and recently won an 8-man tournament in Birmingham with 3 impressive first-round stoppages over opponents Jack Battershall, Sean Clancy and Andrew Lofthouse. Karpowicz featured in the 2012 ISKA Fight of the year on our Main Event 2012 show VS British #1 Darren O'connor. He is an exceptional talent and, after a couple of fights abroad recently, is keen to showcase his skills again in Manchester.

England's Finest will face off against superstar Bennoui in this headlining clash. Harrison is regarded by many in the sport as one of the best lb for lb foreign Muay Thai athletes and will need to be at his best in order to overcome the French World Champion. With over 80 fights experience, Harrison has beaten some of the world's best fighters including Anuwat Kaewsamrit, Numphon PK Stereo and, more recently, 16 times World Champion Andrei 'The Bullet' Kulebin on our Main Event 2012 show.
A recent loss to Mosab Amrani has only fuelled Harrison's desire to come back strongly and he is relishing the opportunity to showcase his skills on the U.K's biggest Muay Thai stage.

Bennoui is a hugely talented fighter who, at the age of 23, has already shared the ring with some of the finest in the sport. A recent 5 round outing vs Saenchai in Ireland saw him push the Thai all the way to the final bell, losing on points. He holds stoppage wins over Mosab Amrani and Medhi Zatout, boasts a victory over highly-rated Damien Alamos and has shared the ring with some top ranked Thais. He is a no-nonsense aggressive fighter with explosive power and will come to take the fight to Harrison in what could be a contender for Fight of the year!

Lofthouse comes into this fight having made a good impression with 2 eye-catching performances in the 8-man in Birmingham in March, where he lost in the final to Italian Angelo Campoli. With a lengthy amateur career behind him and 12 professional wins on his record, he is a bright prospect and will be looking to get back to winning ways here.
Lucien is a top up-and-coming fighter from the Black Widow camp. He will make his A class debut in Milan in May and has a busy year of fighting ahead. He is keen to move up the rankings quickly and his strong, aggressive style could pose problems for slick operator Lofthouse

After being on the wrong end of a controversial decision the first time these two met in Ireland, multiple champion Howson has been looking to set the record straight. Howson is a hugely popular fighter on the Muay Thai scene and has fought some of the world's best during a glittering career spanning more than 60 fights, including Dean James, Rungravee Sasiprapa and Damien Trainer.
Current Irish and Intercontinental champion O'callaghan is one of Irelands top prodigies and comes into this fight with 22 wins from his 28 bouts. He is due to compete for a European title in August and will be looking to impress at The Main Event with a victory over veteran Howson

5 top level bouts already confirmed with many more to come!
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Salford's Skeer will take on rising star David Tieu in this welterweight Full Thai Rules clash.
Skeer was victorious against a late stand-in opponent on our Main Event 2012 and started 2013 well with a stoppage win over Welshman Marc Evans in February. He also recently took a points victory over Scottish veteran Willie Dempster and will come into this fight full of confidence. The slightly less experienced David comes from the well known Team Tieu gym, reknown for their superb technical ability, and is making a name for himself on the circuit with some impressive displays in his last few fights. He is due to face Jersey's Michael Blood in July on his hometown show and will be keen to put on a good performance in the North when he appears on The Main Event.
This is a real clash of styles bout with Skeers aggressive, come-forward style versus the clever, technical brain of Tieu

Thanks pal, we got a lot of good feedback from last year and are looking to improve on that show. Although the venue for this show is smaller, we will feature all the usual razzmatazz associated with our events. Looking forward, we have some massive events in the pipeline for 2014 and beyond